568.045. Endangering the welfare of a child in the first degree, penalties. — 1. A person commits the offense of endangering the welfare of a child in the first degree if he or she:
(1) Knowingly acts in a manner that creates a substantial risk to the life, body, or health of a child less than seventeen years of age;
(2) Knowingly engages in sexual conduct with a person under the age of eighteen years over whom the person is a parent, guardian, or otherwise charged with the care and custody;
(3) Knowingly encourages, aids or causes a child less than seventeen years of age to engage in any conduct which violates the provisions of chapter 571 or 579; or
(4) In the presence of a child less than seventeen years of age or in a residence where a child less than seventeen years of age resides, unlawfully manufactures or attempts to manufacture compounds, possesses, produces, prepares, sells, transports, tests or analyzes any of the following: fentanyl, carfentanil, amphetamine, or methamphetamine, or any analogue thereof.
2. The offense of endangering the welfare of a child in the first degree is a class D felony unless the offense:
(1) Is committed as part of an act or series of acts performed by two or more persons as part of an established or prescribed pattern of activity, or where physical injury to the child results, or the offense is a second or subsequent offense under this section, in which case the offense is a class C felony;
(2) Involves fentanyl or carfentanil, or any analogue thereof, in which case:
(a) The offense is a class B felony; and
(b) A person sentenced under this subdivision shall not be eligible for conditional release or parole until he or she has served at least five years of imprisonment;
(3) Results in serious physical injury to the child, in which case the offense is a class B felony; or
(4) Results in the death of a child, in which case the offense is a class A felony.
Notes of Decisions
Cited in
173
cases (
21 in the last 5 years), 1995–2025 · leading case:
Doe v. Isom, 429 S.W.3d 436 (Mo. Ct. App. 2014).
Doe v. Isom, 429 S.W.3d 436 (Mo. Ct. App. 2014).
· cites it 22× “Charles County Prosecutor’s office filed a Substitute Information in Lieu of Indictment charging Doe with the following six counts: (1) one count of endangering the welfare of a child in the first degree, in violation of Section 568.045; 3 (2) two counts of promoting child…”
State v. Osborn, 318 S.W.3d 703 (Mo. Ct. App. 2010).
· cites it 16× “Osborn ("Defendant") appeals the trial court's judgment convicting him of three counts of endangering the welfare of a child, pursuant to section 568.045, [1] one count of enticement of a child, pursuant to section 566.”
State v. Loughridge, 395 S.W.3d 605 (Mo. Ct. App. 2013).
· cites it 15× “See § 568.045. 1 The trial court sentenced Defendant to serve concurrent five-year sentences.”
State v. Miller, 372 S.W.3d 455 (Mo. 2012).
· cites it 3× “020, which alleged that between January 21, 2006, and January 22, 2006, Miller had sexual intercourse with his daughter, who was his descendant by blood; count VIII charged Miller with the class C felony of endangering the welfare of a child in the first degree in violation of §…”
State v. Burrell, 160 S.W.3d 798 (Mo. 2005).
· cites it 5× “Brandy Burrell (“Mother”) was convicted of one count of endangering the welfare of a child in the first degree in violation of section 568.045, RSMo 2000, 1 and one count of murder in the second degree in violation of section 565.”
F.R. v. St. Charles Cnty. Sheriff's Dep't, 301 S.W.3d 56 (Mo. 2010).
· cites it 6× “020, RSMo, incest; section 568.045, RSMo, endangering the welfare of a child in the first degree; subsection 2 of section 568.”
State v. McKinney, 253 S.W.3d 110 (Mo. Ct. App. 2008).
· cites it 8× “060; and the class B and class C felonies of endangering the welfare of a child in the first degree, under section 568.045, RSMo Cum.Supp.2003. She argues, in her first point, that the evidence did not support a finding of guilt for the class B felony of endangering the welfare…”
State v. Williams, 24 S.W.3d 101 (Mo. Ct. App. 2000).
· cites it 5× “021; 1 endangering the welfare of a child in the first degree, § 568.045; and armed criminal action (ACA), § 571.”
State v. Madison, 997 S.W.2d 16 (Mo. 1999).
· cites it 5× “The Child Endangerment Charges The information that purportedly charged Madison with child endangerment in the first degree, a class D felony, misstated the mental state required by section 568.045, RSMo. 2 The information charged that Madison acted with “criminal negligence,”…”
J.O. v. Taney Cnty. Juv. Off., 315 S.W.3d 406 (Mo. Ct. App. 2010).
· cites it 19× “The petitions further stated that “[Father] pled guilty on June 8, 2006 to Endangering the Welfare of a Child in the first degree, a class ‘C’ felony in violation of Section 568.045 RSMo.” Finally, the petitions alleged that termination of Father’s parental rights was “in the…”
State v. Wade, 232 S.W.3d 663 (Mo. Ct. App. 2007).
· cites it 8× “Analysis Section 568.045 provides that a person commits the felony of first-degree child endangerment by “knowingly act[ing] in a manner that creates a substantial risk to the life, body, or health of a ehild less than seventeen years old[.”
State v. Dunson, 979 S.W.2d 237 (Mo. Ct. App. 1998).
· cites it 7× “DOUBLE JEOPARDY In Point III, defendant argues that his conviction and concurrent sentence under Count IX for endangering the welfare of Dayvon under Section 568.045, 3 and Count VIII for abuse of Dayvon under Section 568.”
— Mo. Rev. Stat. § 568.045(1) — 1 case
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the
Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and
treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.